The mind is illusion’s internal advertising agent
Much of today’s materialistic culture runs through advertising. Most multinational companies often spend far more on product promotion than on quality control. Advertising agents are [...]
When Krishna feels far away, don’t doubt Krishna – doubt your feelings
When we practice bhakti-yoga, our practice may at times seem tasteless and lifeless, prompting the doubt: “Why does Krishna feel so far away?” Actually, Krishna [...]
Gita 14.27 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan Moving to last verse of [...]
Absent-minded means not that the mind is absent, but that our control on it is absent
In common parlance, the word ‘mind’ refers to one’s attention, as in, “Give your full mind to what you are doing.” In the Bhagavad-gita’s philosophical [...]
Strive for not the good life but God’s life
The good life is a life of material success and happiness accompanied by religious piety. God’s life is the life that God wants us to [...]
Don’t give the mind power of attorney – and don’t let it grab it either
Power of attorney refers to the power given by the owner to someone else to act in a legal capacity on one’s behalf. As the [...]
Gita 14.22-25 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan Next is Krishna’s answer Srila [...]
Every trial is a teacher
In life, we all go through various trials. A trial seems especially trying is when it appears pointless, when it seems as if that trial [...]
Don’t wait for God – wait on God
Many people want God to give them a special signal for commencing their spiritual life: “When God calls me, I will begin.” However, such an [...]
Gita 14.19 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan 19-27: Transcending the modes Now [...]
The better way to feel better about ourselves is by appreciation, not denigration
We naturally want to feel better about ourselves. Sometimes we try to feel thus by criticizing others. By pointing others’ faults, we think that the [...]
Temptation can knock us down, but it can’t knock us out
In a boxing match, a boxer may be knocked down, but only when the fallen player fails to rise does the knock down become a [...]
Devotion brings knowledge into action and action into knowledge
In Vedic wisdom, two main paths are the path of action, karma-yoga, and the path of knowledge, jnana-yoga. Gita wisdom explains how the strengths of [...]
Courage centers not on standing up to others but on staying true to your self
When a principled person stands up to a powerful person, especially when that powerful person is autocratic or atrocious, then that act of standing up [...]
Gita 14.15 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan Then what happens to one [...]
Catch the current of emotion – don’t be caught by it
In an ocean, there are often multiple currents moving in different directions. To give a somewhat simple example for a complex phenomenon, in the Indian [...]
Gita 14.14 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan Now after describing this Krishna [...]
Enlightenment doesn’t terminate devotion, but culminates in it
Some impersonalists say, “Enlightenment terminates devotion. As long as we are conditioned and are habituated to thinking about forms, we can conceive the Absolute Truth [...]
To best work with the mind, first work on the mind
Every device requires basic maintenance for smooth functioning. Otherwise, like a woodcutter working with a blunt axe, the device-user may well toil inefficiently, putting in [...]
We can’t avoid perceiving sense objects, but we can avoid pursuing them
The culture assaults our senses with perceptions of tempting sense objects and we often can’t avoid those perceptions. How then can we protect ourselves from [...]
Eat food made of plants, not food made in plants
Food made of plants is both spiritually and physically congenial. Spiritually it shows due reverence for the Creator by minimizing violence to his creation, by [...]